Why financial literacy isn’t taught in school?

P.S. I know, the drawing looks like a kidney. And no, the joke is not lost on me 🙂

This is why I write these “daily thoughts” posts.

I found many forms of this text online, and here’s one version of it:

Imagine being born in 1900.

When you are 14 years old, World War I begins and ends when you are 18 (with 22 million people dead).

Shortly after that, the “Spanish” flu pandemic starts and kills 50 million people.

You go out alive and free, and you are 20 years old.

Then at the age 29, you survive the global economic crisis that started with the collapse of the New York Stock Exchange causing inflation, unemployment, and hunger.

Nazis come to power at 33. You are 39 when World War II begins, and it ends when you are 45 (a total 60+ million dies).

When you’re 52, the Korean war begins. When you’re 64, the Vietnam war begins and ends when you are 75.

A baby born in 1985 believes that his grandparents have no idea how hard life is, even though they survived several wars and disasters.

A boy born in 1995 and 26 today believes that the end of the world when his Amazon package takes more than three days to arrive or if he doesn’t exceed 15 likes for his posted photo on Facebook or Instagram…

In 2021, many of us live in comfort, have access to various sources of entertainment at home, and often have more than needed.

But people complain about everything.

They have electricity, phone, food, hot water, and a roof over their heads. None of this existed in abundance 100 years ago.

Humanity survived much more serious circumstances and never lost the joy of life.

Appreciate your life – this is not a rehearsal!

I bet that if your first reaction isn’t “OK, BOOMER!”, then this made you appreciate the luck of living in this day and age. I also bet this raises a level of admiration for your grandparents. This should serve as a cautionary tale for those that want to listen, in that we’re just becoming too entitled and soft, while living in the most peaceful time in history, and having way more than we really need.

This is why I write these “daily thoughts” posts.

There’s no such thing as x-y balance in one particular moment. You can focus, truly focus, on one thing at a time. Balance is achieved on a longer time scale.

This is why I write these “daily thoughts” posts.

Sprint through the finish line. Don’t slow down before the finish line. Finish strong.

This is why I write these “daily thoughts” posts.

Positive thinking is underrated. Give it a go for a month and decide for yourself.

This is why I write these “daily thoughts” posts.

It is way easier to do something 100% of the time than < 100% of the time.

I first came across this concept in the book How will you measure your life by Clayton Christensen where he puts it like this:

It’s easier to hold to your principles 100 percent of the time than it is to hold to them 98 percent of the time.

The reasoning is that if you slip up only once, it’s way easier to slip up again because you already slipped up.

You can check out a few of my other favorite quotes from that book.

This is why I write these “daily thought” posts.

It is way easier to do something 100% of the time than < 100% of the time. #consistency https://t.co/pQXj94vkHe

— Nikola Brežnjak (@HitmanHR) January 4, 2022

In this new “Daily Thoughts” series, I’m just scratching my own itch. For too long now I’ve been reading and consuming. Not that there’s something inherently wrong with that, but if one doesn’t offset that with his own producing, one often falls into the trap of staying a consumer.

If you think you know something, or want to learn something about yourself, try to explain it ‘on paper’. Personally, I think best ‘on paper’, and it’s been a while since a wrote a post (or a series, or let alone a book). So, I’ll start small (and build up a habit of daily writing again) by sharing a thought daily. I’ll use this as a retrospective a year from now, and edit the posts by adding additional content. With enough years of editing, these should grow into proper-sized posts.

Dear readers, feel free to chime in with your thoughts on my thoughts (so Meta; which is popular in its own right these days).

P.S. Yes, I know; my drawings are amazing 🙂

What if NFTs are the next best thing? What if NFTs are just another version of ICOs in 2018? What if, what if… Either way, stay curious and educate yourself.

[DT]

Journaling is unexpectedly useful (especially in retrospectives). No special form is needed. A good idea is to start with a sentence about what you’re grateful for.

[DT]

Self-sabotage is a real thing. What if we stopped it? What if we embrace what we can become, if only we wouldn’t be afraid of failure?

[DT]